Something of a shopping spree for Ripple Music here in terms of announcing four new bands signed at the same time. With two domestic and two international acts, the Bay Area imprint continues to further its reach in terms of geography as well as style, and as all the groups involved — Jakethehawk, Thunder Horse, Starified and Appalooza — had records out, they’ll all be well due by the time their 2021 release dates come around. I’d have to wonder how many of these records are already in the can and just pushed back because of THE OBVIOUS, but either way, Ripple says they’re coming, they’re coming.

And seriously, maybe save some rock and roll for everyone else, Ripple Music? Or, you know, don’t. Whatever works.

The PR wire brought you all this info:

RIPPLE MUSIC welcome new bands Starified, Appalooza, Jakethehawk and Thunder Horse to their roster for the release of new albums in 2021!

Bay Area-based independent label RIPPLE MUSIC just inked deals with Starified (Russia), Appalooza (France), Jakethehawk (USA) and Thunder Horse (USA) for the release of their upcoming new albums in early 2021. Let’s have a quick roundup!

RIPPLE MUSIC is an independent, California-based label revered worldwide for unearthing the finest bands in heavy rock, stoner, doom and metal through a constant flow of quality releases since 2010, including the latest outings from Scott “Wino” Weinrich, Tony Reed, Wo Fat, Mothership, Mos Generator, The Necromancers, Zed, Vokonis and many others. The label is also known for initiating memorable collaborations between great musicians from the heavy rock world through the release of their sold-out ‘Second Coming of Heavy’ and ‘Turned To Stone’ split records, as well as the more recent ‘Blood and Strings’ acoustic series.

JAKETHEHAWK (USA)

Appalachian rockers JAKETHEHAWK take things into the high-as-hell eighties and lowlife nineties, dredging from the lake floor Kyuss and early Soundgarden but with a bit more hipshake and no Subpop pretension or cynicism. Expect some skyscraping solos, mammoth riffs wrapped in a delightful dose of mystique, as the Pittsburgh foursome is ready to release its third album in early 2021.

THUNDER HORSE (USA)

Hailing from Texas, THUNDER HORSE delivers metal that is played slow and low, with an intensity few others can replicate. A wall of amps and an almost tribal rhythmic vibe produces a guttural sound with intense and mind-bending sensations. Imagine if Black Sabbath and Jane’s Addiction melded into one band and had a Pink Floyd influenced stage show with a Quadraphonic PA.

STARIFIED (Russia)

Moscow’s heavy progressive rockers STARIFIED are a hard-hitting, groove-driven power trio led by a singing drummer. The band call themselves students of the old school rock masters: from Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath to Foo Fighters and Jack White, the Russian trio worships at the altar of powerful riffs, stirring melodies and a raw and dirty garage sound.

APPALOOZA (France)

APPALOOZA is a long-gone stallion speeding after a lost freedom. Formed in Brest, France, in 2012, the band takes its cue from the alt-heavy firepower of Alice in Chains, as well as the rock’n’roll stampede of the likes of Queens of the Stone Age or Them Crooked Vultures, propelling itself with a creativity and sense of direction that are the essence of great bands.

https://www.facebook.com/theripplemusic/
https://www.instagram.com/ripplemusic/
https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/
http://www.ripple-music.com/

Jakethehawk, To Build a Fire (2018)

Thunder Horse, Thunder Horse (2018)

Starified, Feathers (2018)

Appalooza, Appalooza (2018)

There was some drama or some shit this week on the social medias about Cursed Tongue Records. Someone on the label — I honestly don’t even remember who it was; it was the kind of thing where I rolled over in the middle of the night and dicked around on my phone for probably longer than I needed to before falling asleep again — was unsatisfied with the level of promotion or whatever. Whatever it was. I don’t think you can do what any record label does and not have someone gripe along the way, that’s the nature of the business and you’re never, ever, ever going to meet everyone’s expectations, but as someone who’s watched this imprint grow from its inception to where now they’re sharing releases with Ripple Music and selling out quality vinyl pressings on preorders, I’ll throw in my two cents to say I respect their work.

Obviously my dealings with them aren’t the same as someone putting out music through them, but for what it’s worth, I’ve never heard of them ripping anyone off, and they’ve always seemed like passionate, forward-looking individuals to me. Whoever that was might have a legit argument to make, again, I don’t remember and don’t really care enough to go back and search out that post from the depressing miasma of misinformation that is my Facebook feed at this time — once it’s gone, it’s lost — but if I was putting 0ut a record, I’d be stoked to work with them.

I’m not putting out a record, but you know what I mean.

Couple represses coming up for Wolftooth and Psychlona, and I’ll have a new signing announcement from Cursed Tongue next week too, so keep an eye out for that:

WOLFTOOH – ‘VALHALLA’ AND PSYCHLONA – ‘VENUS SKYTRIP’ VINYL REPRESSES ON CURSED TONGUE RECORDS RELEASES WORLDWIDE NOVEMBER 27, 2020

Cursed Tongue Records is super pleased to announce the repressing of two of 2020’s best performing releases, name Richmond, IN based riff-welding behemoth Wolftooth and Bradford, UK kebab-slinging, fuzz-riff, space-traveling stoner desert rockers Psychlona.

Earlier this year both Wolftooth and Psychlona released their sophomore album that both were immediate barnburners, and both vaporized from the record store shelves and online stores quite rapidly.

We thus look forward to the repressing of ‘Valhalla’ and ‘Venus Skytrip’ and to be able to bring both albums out again on premium, heavyweight 180 grams coloured vinyl and get it into the hands of the fans that missed out on the first pressing. Vinyl pre-orders start from the label’s webstore October 2nd at 6PM CET: https://cursedtonguerecords.bigcartel.com/

WOLFTOOTH – ‘VALHALLA’ REPRESS OUT NOVEMBER 27, 2020 [VINYL PRE-ORDER OCTOCER 2ND]

On their sophomore album Wolftooth has truly upped the ante, expanded on their already tested and tried formula, added more layers of sound and variation in the song writing and overall musical execution. The production has improved markedly and the tracks oozes of the much attention that has gotten into capturing both detail, feel and vibe during the recording. As the band members, they express it: “We started work on this album back in August 2019; it is our masterpiece haha”

‘Valhalla’ is everything you would come to expect from a follow-up album to Wolftooth’s über popular self-titled debut album – and then some! And even more! Seriously, we have been heavy-nodding, headbanging and fist pumping on a daily basis since these four hoosiers submitted their new stellar opus. God damn ‘Valhalla’ is great, oh yeah! As if there would ever be a more suiting set of rock hymns to accompany the Aesir Gods to their sacred halls at Asgard after having slain all giants (Jætter, ed.) at the battlefield it has to be ‘Valhalla.’

PSYCHLONA – ‘VENUS SKYTRIP’ REPRESS OUT NOVEMBER 27, 2020 [VINYL PRE-ORDER OCTOCER 2ND]

With ‘Venus Skytrip’ Psychlona has truly taking everything they have come to stand for and kicked it to a whole new level of fuzzy stoner rock space ecstacy. Standing on the pedigree the foursome gained with their critically acclaimed ‘Mojo Rising’ album they have build an entire new spaceship of might and power, but also of bloody coherent beauty and memorability. There’s no escaping from the hum-worthy refrains and hypnotic grooves.

Behold eight tracks of new Psychlona, and as the band expresses it themselves: “When the fog receded from our scorched minds it appeared we’d taken a year long ride through space taking in Venus and Mars before doing a quick lap of the Sun (Blast Off), encountered 27 club rock ‘n’ roll tragedy (Star), drifted around in a smoke fuelled beachside dream (Resin) before taking a lengthy acid trip courtesy of The Owl himself. We’re beyond proud of this album. Comments we hear regularly at live shows mention the power of the sound and the energy in the performance. We believe we’ve captured that power and energy in this record. Oh yeah – we’re still space truckin’ desert rockin’ kebab eating mofos so no change there.” So get your trip on and head for Venus…

http://cursedtonguerecords.bigcartel.com/
https://www.facebook.com/CursedTongueRecords/
https://www.instagram.com/cursedtongue/

Psychlona, Venus Skytrip (2020)

Wolftooth, Valhalla (2020)

Last Giant will release their third album, Let the End Begin, on Oct. 2. The band, now a guitar/drum duo with RFK Heise on the former and Matt Wiles the latter, have been talked about sporadically here over the course of their two prior outings, 2015’s Heavy Habitat (discussed here and here) and 2017’s Memory of the World (discussed here), and the new collection continues several threads of style and substance from its predecessors. Comprised of a tidy 10 tracks running 39 minutes, Let the End Begin furthers the punker-grown-up vibe of the earlier records, and songs like “Edge of Town” and the uptempo boogie “Sunset Queen” and “Dead Shore” remind of the songwriting prowess that is the source of so much of their power as a group, but even unto the (gorgeous) artwork which sees a collision between the animal and human worlds and the lyrical themes that don’t shy away from the amorphous-glob-of-fucked-ness that is the current sociopolitical climate, Let the End Begin is a push ahead for Last Giant‘s established processes. Ain’t broken, and so on.

Heise is at the center of the songs in post-Josh Homme fashion. A telltale “oh…” in “Edge of Town” says a lot, though cuts like opener “Kill Your Memory” and “Radio Swell” marry that radio-friendly sensibility to an undertone of pop-punk, and the melodic bursts in the cleverly-titled “Idiology,” the almost-title-track “The End Will Begin” and the starts-quiet-but-don’t-be-fooled closer “Followers” stake a claim to a more individual approach, whatever familiar elements might persist. “Burn the Wall” would seem to have its origins in obvious real-world lunacy, but is nonetheless clean and in control as Heise and Wiles remain throughout.

That in itself is something of an accomplishment — I certainly know every time I try to engage with the “current moment” as they call it, I feel either unspeakable sadness or skin-peeling rage — so hey, way to keep it together, guys. I suppose, then, this is the part of the post where I tell you that politics as they’re presented throughout Let the End Begin don’t come at the expense of songwriting. We’ve done this dance before, and it’s true, but seriously, if you can’t handle a band writing tunes in an honest way about the world around them and the time in which they’re creating, what the fuck are you doing listening to music in the first place?

The only really sad thing about Let the End Begin is that it’s too late. All that “the end is near” shit? Tell it to the wildfires. Tell it to the hurricanes. Tell it to 130 degrees in Death Valley. Tell it to the nazis next door. Tell it to the plague. Tell it to the election about to be stolen. Tell it to Roe. I tend to count World War I as the end of what was up to that point civilization, but a century-plus later, it sure feels like the end of something. I’ve comforted myself in the past with the notion that my generation isn’t so important to live through that kind of history; that does precious little when the word “unprecedented” seems to have become so much a part of the daily lexicon.

Screw it and rock out? Yeah, that’s a way to go. What I take comfort in these days is less abstract. It’s music. I don’t think songs like those brought to bear by Last Giant are looking to change minds, like someone’s gonna go from watching Tucker Carlson to hearing “Dead Shore” and see the errors of their ways, but in an era that makes one feel all the more screwed minute-by-minute, yes, there is something reassuring to be derived from material as crafted as that on Let the End Begin. The album isn’t staid by any means, or monochrome, but you know from the outset that the band are capable of steering their course and they don’t do anything to betray that trust along the way.

Alright. Enough of my blah blah. “Radio Swell” is premiering below. Go listen to it. Find your joy. Maybe it’s there.

PR wire info and preorder link follow.

Enjoy:

The album can be pre-ordered at: https://lastgiantband.com/

Comprised of RFK Heise (System & Station) on vocals/guitar and Matt Wiles on drums, the two deliver a 70s rock sound with progressive embellishments along the way, +obliterating the pretty confines of everyday rock, preferring to not treat rock as a sedentary form. Let the End Begin finds the band bolder, evolving from their 2015 debut Heavy Habitat (a record in which Heise played every instrument) and 2017’s Memory of the World.

Written and recorded in isolation, RFK Heise and Matt Wiles spent months honing and capturing the essence of now as seen through their eyes. Lyrically the album touches on politics, sex, isolation, love, and loss, all a reflection of the times we collectively find ourselves in.

Last Giant on Thee Facebooks

Last Giant on Spotify

Last Giant on Bandcamp

Last Giant website

As far as doomly documents go, it’s hard to get much more essential than The Obsessed‘s Incarnate. First issued in 1999 on Southern Lord and re-pressed in 2004, the release arrived after the band was put to bed but assembled tracks from demos and live performances, originals and a couple covers, unreleased and released alike, to create a picture of the band across what was already an expanse of nearly two decades. Founded by guitarist/vocalist Scott “Wino” Weinrich as the high school band Warhorse and morphed into The Obsessed in 1980, the group has had multiple runs over the course of their now-40 years, but their effect on the scope of traditionalist doom is unmistakable, not only in their home state of Maryland, where their sound continues to resonate and directly inspire others, but throughout the world as well.

The 2004 edition of Incarnate upped the amount of material from five years prior, and the new remaster from Blues Funeral Recordings adds to that as well, resulting in a billing as Incarnate: Ultimate Edition that feels all the more earned not only with its striking cover art but with a 21-track and 81-minute sprawl of songs. The hits are there — “Neatz Brigade,” “Skybone,” “Streetside,” etc. — but complemented by material like “The Peckerwood Stomp” and the Grand Funk Railroad/The Animals cover “Inside Looking Out” from the band’s 1996 Altamont Nation single, a live version of “Endless Circles” on the 2LP, and a swath of demos covering multiple incarnations of the band with players like Guy Pinhas, Scott Reeder and Ed Gulli and Greg Rogers joining Weinrich throughout. It’s a compilation, to be sure, and the varied sources means varied sound quality, especially on stuff from older tapes, but Incarnate was never supposed to be an album. It just got listened to that way by a new generation of followers.

Someday, on some better planet, when they teach college-level courses about the history of American doom metal and The Obsessed occupy a full week on the semester’s syllabus, the enduring legacy of the band will perhaps get its due. That was revived with the 2017 Relapse Records studio return, Sacred (review here), but even unto Blues Funeral‘s recent unearthed-tapes live outing, Live at Big Dipper (review here), it only continues to grow, and if some eyes-on-the-prize collector picks up Incarnate: Ultimate Edition and is able to dig into The Obsessed in a new way, so much the better. Given the integral nature of the band’s work and the context it provides to their studio and live LPs, it’s kind of a no-brainer. The remaster sounds sharp, the art is poster-worthy, and the tracklisting includes more than either older version of the release, which has been out of print and, frankly, probably shouldn’t be.

You know how doomers say things like “doom on?” This is why.

I’m not sure whether or not to call streaming something that was first released 21 years ago a “premiere,” but however you think it should be tagged, I’m happy to host the remastered version of “Concrete Cancer” below. Under the player you’ll find vinyl info, a quote form Wino and all that good stuff.

Enjoy:

THE OBSESSED’s iconic ‘Incarnate’ album returns exclusively for Record Store Day on October 24th from Blues Funeral Recordings!

Exclusive Record Store Day vinyl configurations of THE OBSESSED ‘Incarnate Ultimate Edition’:

USA/Canada – Black/Red Marble Vinyl
Germany/Austria/Switzerland – Solid Sun Yellow Vinyl
UK/Sweden- Pure White Vinyl

“For me, playing music professionally has always been a labor of love. Refusing to sell out, crafting songs and musical soundscapes is my art. There cannot be a compromise of artistic vision. With relationships and life in general, compromise is necessary, but compromising my art only crosses my mind when describing my philosophy here. ” Wino explains.

“I was given a gift and so I have responsibilities, to carry the torch, if you will, to illuminate the underground pathway that lies ahead and away from the mundane and banal music that some call pop or whatever.

I could not achieve these ideals without heroes with like minds and similar values. So I would like to say thanks to Jadd Shickler and Blues Funeral for believing in the power of this music, and believing in me, and re-releasing this amalgamation of sounds for your listening pleasure.

This is a compilation of outtakes, singles and demo versions of songs that made later albums… or not. Jadd told me that THIS record is what got him into my stuff, THE OBSESSED, SPIRIT CARAVAN, THE HIDDEN HAND, etc., and so we’re happy to offer the fans and listeners a special revamped version. Thanks to all who believe!!!“

The tracklist of ‘Incarnate’, a must-have anniversary album that belongs in every well-sorted THE OBSESSED record collection and is available as an exclusive Record Store Day release, will read as follows:

LP:
A1 Yen Sleep
A2 Concrete Cancer
A3 Peckerwood Stomp
A4 Inside Looking Out
A5 Mental Kingdom

B1 Sodden Jackal
B2 Iron & Stone
B3 Indestroy
B4 Mourning
B5 Spirit Caravan
B6 Skybone

C1 On The Hunt
C2 No Blame
C3 Neatz Brigade
C4 Hiding Mask
C5 Endless Circles (live)

D1 Streetside
D2 Climate Of Despair
D3 Decimation
D4 Fears Machine
D5 Field Of Hours

The Obsessed on Thee Facebooks

The Obsessed on Instagram

Blues Funeral Recordings on Bandcamp

Blues Funeral Recordings website

You’ll note the tour announcement begins with a question. That’s the state of everything, right there. Yeah, it would be awesome if Brant Bjork can get back abroad and start up the touring cycle again, do the thing, see the people, all of that. What’s the state of the world next Spring? I have no idea. Will this tour happen? I have no idea. I have no idea about anything. Now or then. But I give points for trying and I’m happy to post a list of tour dates, so here we are.

Brant Bjork and his band will be out with Sweden’s MaidaVale, as was the plan for earlier this Spring, which unfortunately was the moment at which all plans for any and everything went out the window. Interesting to note about the rescheduled shows that Desertfest Berlin 2021 is currently slated for May 13-16, so if Bjork is going to get announced for that bill, it would be as an added final date of this tour. Desertfest London 2021 is April 30-May 2, so presumably if Bjork is to play that, it would be on May 1, which is open on the list below. Both were stops on the tour that was supposed to happen earlier this year, so it would make sense.

Presented by Sound of Liberation, as one would expect. Word came from the socials:

BRANT BJORK – Europe 2021

2021 Will Be Our Year, Right?!

We certainly F*ing hope so. Brant and band are crossing their fingers a lot these days. Are they practicing a slick new guitar move?! Maybe yes, but it’s also hoping they can come and play in Europe next Spring! We got the dates, We got the old jams, We got new jams, We got the incredible Maidavale on board again. You got to get your tickets, You got something to look forward to, You gotta wait just a while longer. You gotta stay healthy until then.

04.23 Dortmund* Piano
04.24 Aschaffenburg* Colos-Saal
04.25 Linz* Stadtwerkstatt
04.26 Graz* PPC
04.27 Vienna* Arena
04.28 Erlangen* E-Werk
04.29 Stuttgart* Universum
04.30 Nijmegen* Doornroosje
05.02 Groningen* Vera
05.03 Amsterdam* Melkweg
05.04 Sint-Niklaas* De Casino
05.05 Paris* Petit Bain
05.06 Toulouse* Le Rex
05.07 Vitoria Helldorado
05.08 Madrid Kristonfest
05.09 Barcelona Wolf
05.11 Monthey* Pont Rouge
05.12 Winterthur* Gaswerk
05.13 Munich* Feierwerk
05.14 Dresden* Beatpol
05.15 Hamburg* Knust
* with MaidaVale

https://www.facebook.com/BrantBjorkOfficial
https://www.instagram.com/brant_bjork
http://www.brantbjork.com
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS
http://www.heavypsychsounds.com
https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com

Brant Bjork, Brant Bjork (2020)

Guitarist Julia Gaeta (Restless Ghosts, ex-Albez Duz) takes on immersive soundscaping with her Madrigal project. I’ll confess that I had to look up the word “tenebrism” to get a better idea of the stated sound she’s going for — she calls it “guitar tenebrism” — and to save you the trouble unless you took more art classes than I apparently did, it’s like chiaroscuro but with higher contrasts between light and dark. More intense. Based in Berlin, Gaeta began posting singles under the Madrigal banner last Spring and through YouTube, put up four songs between May and July 2019.

That was before Restless Ghosts released their self-titled debut EP in August with Gaeta handling vocals and all instruments save drums, which were performed by Sara Neidorf (Mellowdeath), and since then, Madrigal has been silent, but the new song “Eclipsed” finds Gaeta departing the studio setting and self-filmed feel of the prior clips for the great outdoors. Working with director David Fitt, who has helmed videos for Hexvessel, Grave Pleasures and Death Alley, among others, Gaeta brings “Eclipsed” to life in a context that suitably plays between light and dark: an open field at what would seem to be dusk with a chunk missing out of the moon far back in the distance. I don’t know if it was an actual eclipse or when the video was filmed, but you get that impression anyway, and atmosphere has a big role to play with Madrigal generally, so it fits.

The solo outfit is a departure from the goth-tinged cultism of Restless Ghosts, but the ambience in the “Eclipsed” video is meditative and more than slightly wistful, so not completely out of whack either. Check it out and see what you think. Gaeta gives a quote below. My favorite part is where she says she doesn’t know where the project’s heading. I look forward to finding out.

Please enjoy:

Madrigal, “Eclipsed” official video

Julia Gaeta on “Eclipsed”:

Madrigal is a project that explores the depths and lushness of guitar sounds. It’s about straddling the darkness and light in both sound and visuals. Even though the compositions are pretty different from one another, I always try to evoke feelings that live in an “in-between”, twilight space. Now more than ever, it’s cathartic to escape to somewhere else, and I tend to do this when creating Madrigal songs. I hope that the end result helps others do the same.

“Eclipsed” is kind of a send-off for a heavy summer and a welcome to the decay of fall. All my previous songs have been DIY, with me doing audio and video recording, and it’s been so great to involve filmmaker David Fitt (Grave Pleasures, King Dude, Death Alley, Perturbator) who is helping to bring these worlds to life in a bigger way.

There’s a lot more to come. I think Madrigal is more of an experiment than anything else, because I don’t know how it will evolve. It’s just really nice to be able to release music in a more unconventional way.

Madrigal on Thee Facebooks

Madrigal on Instagram

Madrigal on YouTube

Canadian heavy rock newcomers Handsome Pants have a show booked for Oct. 3. Any other year, ‘Band Has Show in Ontario’ probably wouldn’t qualify as newsworthy on its own, but as you know, this isn’t any other year. So yeah. Oct. 3, at The 765 in London, ON, they’ll be playing. The band, formed by vocalist/guitarist Andrew Bateman, and the presumably-brothers rhythm section of bassist Jordan Nodwell and Kyle Nodwell after the dissolution of their prior outfit The Rapscallions, made their first audio public earlier this year in the form of the single “Turgid.”

It’s at the bottom of the post if you don’t feel like clicking through to chase it down on their Bandcamp, but with the newer track premiering below, called simply “Rut,” they bring something of a different look, playing off experimental-feeling twisted harmonica via Handsome Pants‘ non-Rapscallion member, Chuck Smith, as well as a languid bluesy groove, a subtle hook and vocal interplay that works well to add depth to the proceedings. I ain’t gonna lie, the fact that they swiped the Hot Wheels logo doesn’t hurt either in terms of catching the eye — lotta monster trucks around my house these days, with the toddler and all — but it was ultimately the cleverness of the song itself that won me over. I’ll spare you the “one to watch” cliché, but the song’s cool, and hell, you’ve got time. Don’t pretend like you don’t.

Their plans? How should I know, and who would even bother with plans at this point of planetary down-the-drainitude? They’ve got a show! They’ve got a new single! I fail to see what more you could possibly ask.

Song’s right below, PR wire announcement follows.

Enjoy:

Handsome Pants, “Rut” official premiere

Handsome Pants is the kind of band that shows up to a gig dressed haphazardly in mismatched Value Village clothes they picked out for each other. The kind of band that doesn’t take themselves seriously just wants to rock out and have a good time with their fans. Handsome Pants proves fun does not be sacrificed to make lively, highly creative music.

Loud and obnoxious is the name of the game for Handsome Pants and the rambunctious uniqueness really shines through with their new single, “Rut” which follows a concept that a lot of people are familiar with. The feeling of being stuck in a rut and turning to alcohol. The band explains the single in more depth:

“Rut is the second release in our early existence as a band. This song is something Andrew has been sitting on for a long time and rewriting lyrics. Finally finding the right content and lyrics putting it together at this time seems perfect. It seems to relate to a lot of people right now and what they are going through with the pandemic and everything else happening right now.”

The most mainstream track the band has to date still holds on to its originality with the layered vocals and prominent harmonica.

“Rut” is suitable for all kinds of rock radio, it’s punchy and tight, for fans of Royal Blood, Highly Suspect, and Clutch, Handsome Pants is just getting started and anticipates more music coming down the pipe.

Handsome Pants are:
Andrew Bateman – Lead Vocals and Guitar
Jordan Nodwell- Lead Bass
Kyle Nodwell- Drums
Chuck Smith- Harmonica

Handsome Pants, “Turgid”

Handsome Pants on Thee Facebooks

Handsome Pants on Instagram

Handsome Pants on Bandcamp

Port Orchard, Washington’s Mos Generator and Milan, Italy’s Di’Aul will release a split LP this Friday through Argonauta Records. It’s a vinyl-only, limited-to-250 copies pressing, and if the pairing of bands seems random or at very least plucked out of the ether, the story behind how it came together could hardly be simpler. Reportedly, members of Di’Aul went to see Mos Generator on tour a few years back and hit up guitarist/vocalist Tony Reed about making something happen. Couple years after the fact, here we are. The life lesson is you lose nothing by sending that email, and maybe you get to put out a split with Mos Generator.

The Pacific Northwest heavy rock institution offer three tracks on side A of the quite-manageable 32-minute outing, and bring forth an installment of their ‘Plundering of the Vaults’ series with demos recorded between 2014 and 2018. As self-sufficient as they are in the studio with Reed working as producer as well as helming mixing and mastering, it’s hard to imagine the vaults aren’t overflowing at any given time, but the three inclusions here run shortest to longest and feel particularly choice.

“I Spoke to Death” opens in Sabbath-rock fashion while also invoking Americana folk, while “The Paranoid” rolls at a lumbering pace in contrast to its own obvious reference while the lyrics nod to The Stooges‘ “TV Eye” and vocal lines intertwine behind one of the most outwardly doomed progressions I’ve heard from the band. Somehow fitting, a cross-lineup (explained below) cover of Pink Floyd‘s “Fearless” — also recently taken on by Seattle/Los Angeles heavies Snail — caps Mos Generator‘s portion of the release with clarity cutting through psychedelia and a kick of energy bolstering the mellow vibe of the Meddle original while still ending with a crowd chant, maybe backwards in this case.

Meanwhile, in Milan, Di’Aul crush it. The four-piece of vocalist MoMo, guitarist LeLe, bassist Jeremy Toma and drummer Diego Bertoni celebrate 10 years of the band’s existence in 2020, and their two assembled cuts — “The House on the Edge of the World” (8:47) and “Three Ladies” (7:56) — stand in immediate contrast to side A in their focus on sheer tonal heft and impact. Beginning with two minutes-plus of ambience and stark guitar, “The House on the Edge of the World” builds into a massive and righteous nod without losing its hook in the ensuing fray.

It is H-E-A-V-Y, and harsher in its approach than Mos Generator, but makes a better complement for the fact that each act brings something different to the release. There’s sludge underlying what Di’Aul are doing, and some jabs and turns of riff in “The House on the Edge of the World” remind of YOB, but as the track chug-stop-chugs to its end, its gravity is its own. More immediate, “Three Ladies” starts out with bass and drums and is underway soon enough with its own stomp and drawl, a solo break as it heads into its midsection proving only a brief respite from the willful repetition and concrete-on-skull vibe that surrounds.

If you think you can hang, you probably can. Splits like this often become a footnote in the respective catalogs of the bands that take part in them. Mos Generator always have a slew of things going on, and Di’Aul are two years removed from their second LP, Nobody’s Heaven (review here), but for an offering that asks next to nothing of the listener beyond the time involved in hearing the thing, and for the quality of work put in by both groups, you can’t really go wrong, whether either band is new to you or not. The relatively few physical copies that exist create some urgency around it, so I’m that much more appreciative of being able to host the full stream of the split for you to check out in advance of the proper release this Friday.

More PR wire info follows under the player.

Please enjoy:

Mos Generator & Di’Aul, Split official premiere

Heavy rock icons, Mos Generator, have teamed up with Italy’s doom and sludge rock heavy weights Di’Aul for the release of a 5-track split vinyl-only LP, coming out on September 25th, 2020, via Argonauta Records!

Preorder here: www.argonautarecords.com/shop

Mos Generator’s plundering of the Vaults continues with three demos recorded between May 2014 and June 2018. Says Tony Reed, “All three of these songs were recorded live in our rehearsal space and then layers were added later in the studio. There are a few interesting things about these songs. First, they are loosely arranged ideas that were only played two or three times before we recorded them, and I think that is what helps give them the raw edge that they have. And two, there is a crossover of band line-ups. On the Pink Floyd cover “Fearless”, original drummer Shawn Johnson is playing with second line-up bassist Sean Booth. That has happened before with other configurations and I enjoy it. Someday I would like to record with both rhythm sections at once.”

After a decade of shows across Europe and four albums to date, Di’Aul have grabbed the chance to team up with one of the best rock bands of our time: Mos Generator. “We saw them live with Saint Vitus during their European tour, completely astonished from their sound, MoMo and Rex decided to write a message to Mr. Tony Reed and ask him to make a record together. And so it is!”

Di’Aul recorded two brand new songs in a one day session with longtime friends and producers Federico Lino and Alessio Massara of the Iron Ape Studio in Vigevano (Pavia – Italy), mastered at HeavyHead Recording Co. by Tony Reed himself.

Tracklist:
A Side Mos Generator – “Plundering of the Vaults : Vol II”
1. I Spoke to Death
2. The Paranoid
3. Fearless ( Pink Floyd Cover )

B Side Di’Aul
1. The House on the Edge of the World
2. Three Ladies

Mos Generator on Thee Facebooks

Mos Generator on Bandcamp

Di’Aul on Thee Facebooks

Di’Aul on Bandcamp

Argonauta Records website